Sinful Nights: The Six-Month Marriage/Injured Innocent/Loving

‘By putting on the colour and then wiping it off.’ Claire told him promptly. ‘That way, only the most raised parts of the design get the paint.’

She saw his eyebrows lift and explained. ‘It’s something I’m very interested in, and last winter I got several books from the library on the subject. We could try something similar in the drawing-room, if you like, it’s certainly large enough to take it.’

‘Mummy, which bedroom is going to be ours?’

Lucy’s impatient question distracted them both, and Claire suggested to her daughter that she and Heather should share the room with the two single beds in it.

While she was talking to them, the porter came up with their luggage. Jay tipped him and then glanced at his watch.

‘It’s gone twelve o’clock. How about an early lunch and then shopping this afternoon?’ To Claire he added, ‘We won’t have time now, but later I’ll show you the sports centre they have here. It’s very luxurious, and we supplied the plaster columns that surround the swimming pool. We were called in after they had a bad fire eighteen months ago, and we had to replace and match a lot of the original plasterwork. This hotel is part of a small but very prestigious group which specialises in these country-house settings. We’re in the process of negotiating a contract with them for work in other hotels owned by the group.’

He broke off suddenly and frowned, his voice brusque. ‘I’m sorry, you don’t want to hear all about that. It’s boring …’

‘It isn’t boring at all,’ Claire contradicted him quickly. ‘I think it’s fascinating.’

Jay gave her an odd look, and for the first time she saw in him Heather’s vulnerability. She reached out to touch his arm in the same comforting way she would have done one of the girls, and as she touched him, he stopped dead and stared down at her. Immediately Claire withdrew from him, her face scarlet.

‘I’m sorry, I …’

‘Don’t be. There’s no need.’

The way he was looking at her made her feel quite odd, breathless and slightly light-headed, and then the lift arrived and he looked away, and everything returned to normal.

They lunched in what had once been the Victorian conservatory, now beautifully restored and replanted.

The menu, although not vegetarian, featured recipes chosen with healthy eating in mind. Claire and Jay both chose a vegetable mosaic in broccoli mousse to start with, while the two girls opted for a fresh fruit platter.

‘What would you like for your main course?’ Jay asked her.

‘I think I’ll have the chicken in cheese sauce with vegetables, and the same for the girls.’

‘Mmm. I’m going to have the poached fillet of steak.’

The food, when it came, was deliciously light, leaving Claire feeling virtuous enough to opt for crème caramel for her sweet.

Jay had ordered wine with their meal, and over coffee Claire found herself slowly relaxing as the alcohol spread through her body.

‘It’s just gone two now,’ said Jay, glancing at his watch. ‘It will take us about twenty minutes to get into Bath, so—if you’re ready?’

At half past two exactly, he was skilfully parking the car in the centre of Bath.

It was only a short walk from where they had parked to the main shopping area, but Jay directed them instead to what Claire soon realised was a far more exclusive area.

‘I’m told by my secretary that we’re far more likely to find what we want here,’ was the only explanation he gave Claire, as he shepherded them all into one of the exclusive boutiques.

The woman who came forward to serve them was wearing the most elegant casual clothes Claire had ever seen, and her heart sank. It would cost a small fortune to buy anything here. Jay probably didn’t realise. But Jay was already explaining to her that she, Claire, needed a complete winter wardrobe, including evening wear.

‘There’s a couple of toy shops further along here,’ he added to Claire. ‘I’ll take the girls there and they can start thinking about what they’d like Father Christmas to bring them. We’ll come back in, say, an hour.’

Whereas when he had calmly announced what he thought she needed to buy she had felt almost resentful, now, conversely, she felt as though he were deserting her, and wanted to beg him to stay, but he and the girls were gone before she could raise any protest.

‘What a sensible man your husband is,’ remarked the saleswoman when they had gone. ‘Choosing clothes is difficult enough, isn’t it, without the added distraction of an impatient family?’

‘He isn’t my husband,’ Claire said weakly. ‘At least, not yet. We’re getting married tomorrow.’

Now what on earth had made her say that? The woman’s semi-formal manner relaxed immediately.

‘Oh, how exciting! Have you already chosen something to wear? Of course, I suppose you must …’